Two Detroit pension fund officials indicted

DETROIT (Reuters) - Two former Detroit city officials were indicted on corruption charges on Wednesday, a week after ex-Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick was convicted for similar offenses and days before a state-appointed emergency manager takes over the city's finances.

A grand jury accused former city pension officials Ronald Zajac and Paul Stewart of a bribery and kickback scheme that the U.S. Attorney's office said involved more than $200 million in Detroit pension fund investments.

Stewart is a former trustee of the retirement system for the city's police and firefighters. Zajac worked for two of the city's other retiree pension funds.

Four people have now been indicted in the suspected pension scheme, the U.S. Attorney's office said. The others were investment sponsor Roy Dixon and former treasurer Jeffrey Beasley, a fraternity brother of Kilpatrick's.

Kilpatrick was convicted on two dozen federal charges of corruption and bribery in a separate case and is in prison awaiting sentencing.

"Since taking office in 2009, restoring trust and integrity to city government has been a top priority and of utmost importance to me personally," Mayor Dave Bing said in an emailed statement. "Detroiters deserve to be represented by those who adhere to the highest ethical standards, and when the public trust is betrayed, justice must prevail."

(Reporting by Steve Neavling; Editing by Daniel Trotta and Leslie Adler)